Antony Blinken

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, shake hands with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, in Amman, Jordan, Oct. 13, 2023.

The Palestinian political system needs to be rebuilt on ‘national consensus,’ says political activist

Israel-Hamas war

The Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank is, which is the larger of the two Palestinian territories, is backed by the international community and the US. But the PA has lost much of its sway in Gaza. To explore where the PA and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas fit into the larger picture, The World’s host Marco Werman speaks with Nour Odeh, a Palestinian political activist, researcher and author based in Ramallah.

three diplomats shake hands in front of an embassy building

‘Open lines of communication’ are crucial to improving relations with Beijing, Amb Nicholas Burns says

US State Department Counselor Derek Chollet smiles ahead of a meeting in Serbia, Thursday, Jan. 12, 2023. 

America’s top priority is to help Ukraine ‘defend itself’ as a sovereign nation, Blinken adviser says

Ukraine
Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen speaks during a Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington.

US senators demand full White House investigation into shooting of Palestinian American journalist

Justice
headshot of woman

New US ambassador to Kenya arrives ahead of Tuesday’s election

Foreign policy
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is shown on a TV hanging on the wall in the distance with several people wearing face masks stand in the nearground.

Blinken pushes back against lawmakers’ criticism of Afghanistan withdrawal.

Top of The World

Top of The World: The US’ top diplomat, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, defended the country’s withdrawal from Afghanistan before the House Foreign Affairs Committee. And, Pope Francis has begun a four-day visit to Slovakia after a seven-hour stop in Hungary. Also, nearly 45% of young people interviewed in a global survey say they feel anxiety or distress about climate change

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is shown looking to his right while walking and wearing a dark face mask with a solider stands in the distance.

US top diplomats visit Persian Gulf to reassure allies

Top of The World

Top of The World: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin are in Qatar for talks aimed at reassuring Gulf allies that the Biden administration is not abandoning its partners in the Middle East by withdrawing from Afghanistan. And, the pre-trial of alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is set to resume at the Guantanamo Bay detention center. Also, El Salvador has become the first country in the world to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender.

A group of military personel are shown carrying a flag-drapped coffin and walking toward US President Joe Biden and other cabinet officials.

US military flies out evacuees in waning hours of withdrawal

Conflict

The steady stream of US military jets taking off and landing at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Afghanistan’s capital continued Monday even after rocket fire targeted the airport and rockets hit a nearby neighborhood.

Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar is shown wearing traditional white robes while standing next to and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi wearing a suit.

China holds high-level talks with the Taliban

Top of The World

Top of The World: China Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks on Wednesday with high-level Taliban officials. And, a vital roadway and lifeline that supplies humanitarian aid to the war-torn Tigray region in northern Ethiopia is blocked. Also, one of the world’s largest container ships that blocked the Suez Canal for six days in March — causing global supply chain havoc — has reached the port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands

Several people are shown in a street throwing items at a tank and other armored vehicles.

Riots in Lebanon as West calls for quick Cabinet formation

Conflict & Justice

Tension intensified in Lebanon on Friday, with riots leaving more than two dozen people injured in the northern city of Tripoli, including five soldiers who were attacked with a hand grenade.